Earthquake prediction or just plain coincidence?
March 21, 2012 9:18 AM Subscribe
Yesterday, March 20 2012, Mexico City and the southern states were shaken by a 7.4 earthquake. Surprisingly, an earthquake drill was planned for the southern state of Chiapas for the same day and with only 3 minutes of difference from the time the earthquake happened. Coincidence? Or was it just a warm up for the Mayan 2012 end of the World prophesy?
This post was deleted for the following reason: Eh, this is kind of thin news-of-the-weird stuff. -- cortex
I expect it was actually the Mayan End of Coincidence prophesy.
posted by Celsius1414 at 9:20 AM on March 21, 2012
posted by Celsius1414 at 9:20 AM on March 21, 2012
Is this a History Channel ad?
posted by Thorzdad at 9:21 AM on March 21, 2012 [6 favorites]
posted by Thorzdad at 9:21 AM on March 21, 2012 [6 favorites]
Since the Mayans didn't know about leap days, the end of the world should have been a few years ago.
I vote coincidence.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 9:21 AM on March 21, 2012 [2 favorites]
I vote coincidence.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 9:21 AM on March 21, 2012 [2 favorites]
The aliens who gave the Mayans the end of the world date knew about leap years.
[Inflates hair to look insane]
posted by mccarty.tim at 9:23 AM on March 21, 2012 [2 favorites]
[Inflates hair to look insane]
posted by mccarty.tim at 9:23 AM on March 21, 2012 [2 favorites]
I wonder if they had to tell everyone the real earthquake was not a drill.
posted by 2bucksplus at 9:23 AM on March 21, 2012
posted by 2bucksplus at 9:23 AM on March 21, 2012
I wonder if they had to tell everyone the real earthquake was not a drill
I get the humour, because hopefully no one involved in the drill missed the earth shaking as a signal that it was time to move to real operations.
However, I've been involved in some mock disaster exercises; one of the first things I was told as a participant was that if anyone ever provided information to me in my role and used the phrase "no duff", that was the signal that an actual event had occurred and we had to now engage in a real response. It is something those who work in the field of disaster response and management have to think about (and, I have to admit, the first time I had to think about it, it was terrifying - the possibility that many of our resources and knowledgeable people could be (a) miles away from where they were needed and (b) potentially already in need of rest, replenishment and resupply right when they were needed most).
posted by never used baby shoes at 9:32 AM on March 21, 2012
I get the humour, because hopefully no one involved in the drill missed the earth shaking as a signal that it was time to move to real operations.
However, I've been involved in some mock disaster exercises; one of the first things I was told as a participant was that if anyone ever provided information to me in my role and used the phrase "no duff", that was the signal that an actual event had occurred and we had to now engage in a real response. It is something those who work in the field of disaster response and management have to think about (and, I have to admit, the first time I had to think about it, it was terrifying - the possibility that many of our resources and knowledgeable people could be (a) miles away from where they were needed and (b) potentially already in need of rest, replenishment and resupply right when they were needed most).
posted by never used baby shoes at 9:32 AM on March 21, 2012
This is only a drill. If this were an actual earthquake, your Drill Leader would be pooping his pants.
posted by oneswellfoop at 9:32 AM on March 21, 2012
posted by oneswellfoop at 9:32 AM on March 21, 2012
I think to be safe we should just never have another earthquake drill again.
posted by koeselitz at 9:33 AM on March 21, 2012
posted by koeselitz at 9:33 AM on March 21, 2012
I wonder if they had to tell everyone the real earthquake was not a drill.
I figured the shaking ground and stuff falling off walls helped people make that distinction :)
posted by Elly Vortex at 9:33 AM on March 21, 2012
I figured the shaking ground and stuff falling off walls helped people make that distinction :)
posted by Elly Vortex at 9:33 AM on March 21, 2012
So, two links to conspiracy theory websites and a cnn article from yesterday? That's what we've got here?
posted by empath at 9:33 AM on March 21, 2012
posted by empath at 9:33 AM on March 21, 2012
My earliest memory of a news story was Nancy Reagan stepping off a plane. I wanna say it was like 83? And there was a red banner in the upper left corner of the screen. It said Mexico City. I think it was Nancy visiting the quake struck city.
What national news had that banner w/location in the corner?
posted by symbioid at 9:34 AM on March 21, 2012
What national news had that banner w/location in the corner?
posted by symbioid at 9:34 AM on March 21, 2012
Coincidence?
Yep.
Or was it just a warm up for the Mayan 2012 end of the World prophesy?
The Mayans didn't predict that the world would end in 2012. They did have an extremely complex, elegant system of reckoning time, and December 2012 is just a turning point in their long-count calendar. So saying that they predicted such is kinda like saying that our calendar predicts the end of the world at 2000 or 3000.
posted by clockzero at 9:34 AM on March 21, 2012
Yep.
Or was it just a warm up for the Mayan 2012 end of the World prophesy?
The Mayans didn't predict that the world would end in 2012. They did have an extremely complex, elegant system of reckoning time, and December 2012 is just a turning point in their long-count calendar. So saying that they predicted such is kinda like saying that our calendar predicts the end of the world at 2000 or 3000.
posted by clockzero at 9:34 AM on March 21, 2012
If one thinks that Governments are skilled enough to schedule a drill from the time frame of a solar flare scheduled to strike Earth AND one believes there is a tie between solar flares and earthquakes then one might have a reason to claim there was a plan at work.
If the Mexican government is skilled enough mobilise a drill right after a flare - the world could use more governments that skilled.
posted by rough ashlar at 9:35 AM on March 21, 2012
If the Mexican government is skilled enough mobilise a drill right after a flare - the world could use more governments that skilled.
posted by rough ashlar at 9:35 AM on March 21, 2012
Ah, 85... And here's a pic (though not a screen cap of what I saw)
posted by symbioid at 9:35 AM on March 21, 2012
posted by symbioid at 9:35 AM on March 21, 2012
Coincidence?
Yes.
This was short answers to dumb questions. See you next time when we ask: UFOs: are they real?
posted by MartinWisse at 9:35 AM on March 21, 2012 [1 favorite]
Yes.
This was short answers to dumb questions. See you next time when we ask: UFOs: are they real?
posted by MartinWisse at 9:35 AM on March 21, 2012 [1 favorite]
UFOs: are they real?
Yes.
Objects Fly. Sometimes one can not identify what they are. Thus the flying object becomes unidentified.
posted by rough ashlar at 9:38 AM on March 21, 2012
Yes.
Objects Fly. Sometimes one can not identify what they are. Thus the flying object becomes unidentified.
posted by rough ashlar at 9:38 AM on March 21, 2012
Ah, 85... And here's a pic (though not a screen cap of what I saw)
FrankenRomney sighting!
posted by DU at 9:43 AM on March 21, 2012
FrankenRomney sighting!
posted by DU at 9:43 AM on March 21, 2012
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posted by Faint of Butt at 9:19 AM on March 21, 2012